Hasta La Gadget!

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett on Monday campaigned alongside Democrat Hillary Clinton at a rowdy rally in his home state of Nebraska, where he challenged Republican Donald Trump to release his tax returns and said he would personally drive people to the polls in November.

After delivering a forceful rebuke of Trump’s recent statements about the Muslim parents of a decorated American soldier killed in Iraq, Buffett said he wanted to surprise Clinton and “make a little news” by announcing the launch of a get-out-the vote effort.

“I pledge today that on Election Day, Nov. 8, I will take at least 10 people to the polls who would otherwise have difficulty getting there,” Buffett said.

Buffett also said he was backing a website, Drive2Vote, that would coordinate transportation to cast votes and that he had reserved a trolley that seats 32 people for the same purpose.

“I’m going to be on it all day. I’m going to do selfies, whatever it takes,” Buffett said.

Buffett, a Clinton backer, said his goal is to generate the highest voter turnout in the congressional district that includes Omaha of any in the country. Nebraska is one of just two U.S. states that award electoral votes in presidential elections by congressional district. Buffett, whose Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate is based in Omaha, stressed that this gives power to Omaha residents to affect the outcome of the election.

Clinton responded to Buffett’s pledge with a promise of her own, if his turnout goal is met.

“Warren and I will dance in the streets of Omaha together! Maybe if we’re really lucky he’ll wear his Elvis costume again!” Clinton said.

Buffett earlier challenged Trump to release his tax returns, something that presidential candidates typically do. The New York businessman has said he cannot do so until the Internal Revenue Service has completed an audit.

“Now I’ve got news for him,” Buffett said. “I’m under audit, too, and I would be delighted to meet him anyplace, anytime, before the election.

“I’ll bring my tax return, he can bring his tax return … and let people ask us questions about the items that are on there,” Buffett added, saying Trump was “afraid” not of the IRS but voters.

Buffett spoke for nearly 30 minutes to a raucous capacity crowd of roughly 3,100 in a high school in suburban Omaha with Clinton sitting at his side. He said the “final straw” was an ABC interview with Trump that aired Sunday in which Trump criticized Khizr Khan and Ghazala Khan.

The Khans took the stage together at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia last week, and Khizr Khan delivered a speech about his son, U.S. Army Captain Humayun Khan, who was killed by a bomb in Iraq 12 years ago. He also attacked Trump for proposing a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States.

Trump has said he was “viciously” attacked by Khizr Khan, a naturalized U.S. citizen and a Muslim, when he publicly doubted the real estate developer had read the U.S. Constitution.

Trump also questioned whether Ghazala Khan, who stood at her husband’s side during the address, was “allowed” to speak. Khan had also said that Trump had “sacrificed nothing,” prompting Trump in his ABC interview to say, “I think I’ve made a lot of sacrifices.”

Buffett on Monday bluntly contradicted Trump.

“No member of the Buffett family has gone to Iraq or Afghanistan. No member of the Trump family has gone to Iraq or Afghanistan,” Buffett said. “We’ve both done extremely well during this period and our families haven’t sacrificed anything.”

(Reporting and writing by Amanda Becker in Omaha; Additional writing by Eric Beech; Editing by Howard Goller and Leslie Adler)

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“Hi, my sister told me you worked at this company and I would love to take you to lunch and discuss the administrative assistant role that is currently available.”

“Hey, I saw there is a job I think I’m really qualified for at your company, can you pass my resume along?”

“Hi. I know we haven’t talked in years but I am very interested in the account manager role at your company. I applied for it but I’m not sure if I’m qualified. Are you able to put in a good word for me?”

These were the types of emails, Facebook and LinkedIn messages I would receive on a weekly basis.

I was never in the recruiting or human resources departments. I was an employee at companies that were very reputable. Companies that were extremely sought-after. Companies that were on lists of “Best Places to Work” and “Most Fun Work Environment.”

When “friends” saw that I worked for these companies – they immediately came looking for me to help them get a job.

The cliché phrase, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know” certainly rings true. It’s hard to acquire jobs by blindly applying on job sites but how does an employee at an existing company handle responding to friends or friends of friends who are interested in working there? What’s an appropriate response?

“I found it helpful to ask the candidate to be specific about why they were interested in working at the company, and their main differentiators as a job seeker. I generally ask what is one facet in their competency area they’d suggest changing, or what’s something they’ve noticed that we as a company could improve upon.” says Brooke German, founder of AREA GREY.

Having the candidate explain why they want to join the company and showcase what makes them different from all other candidates, really puts them on the spot to show their true interest, admiration and connection to the company.

“This tactic of gleaning additional information and requiring a bit more thought from the candidate enables me to separate serious candidates from those less eager and allows me to feel comfortable recommending them to hiring managers if their skill sets are appropriate.” says German.

There are plenty of people who are applying to 25 jobs a week without really paying attention to what the qualifications and requirements are. They see a cool company and want to be in on it.

“I’ve always been very weary of making introductions or recommendations for friends on the job front, because being someone’s good friend does not necessarily give you any indication of their work capabilities, business acumen, etc.” says marketing and communications consultant, Brona Cosgrave. “I always proceed with caution when making an intro to HR, clearly stating the level of my relationship and interaction. I never presume too much, as a bad recommendation can reflect negatively on you too.”

Sam Zises, Founder & CEO of [L]earned Media notes that many companies have referral programs setup, which incentivizes employees to recommend their friends resumes. This often seems worthwhile to employees even if they don’t really know how qualified the candidate is. “If you work at a smaller firm, you may be a bit more hesitant to forward your awkward cousin or younger brother’s resume with the risk that it will reflect poorly on you.” says Sam. “To avoid these circumstances, I often find it best to simply supply that individual with the contact information or job website, and tell them that you’re ‘just not in a position to make a referral’.

When you’re considering submitting a ‘friends’ resume to the hiring manager – consider your relationship to the candidate, how this can reflect on you and if you think it’s really worth the risk.

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If you don’t vote for Hillary on November 8th, you may never vote again.

As I recover from sleep deprivation from the week at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, thoughts have been swirling through my mind, and I feel the need to put them to paper. Some are priorities for us all over the next 100 days; others would be important under normal conditions, but these aren’t normal conditions. I’ll put them out there while they’re still fresh, for later referral when the future becomes clearer.

• November 8th is a potential Extinction-Level Event. Applying the Precautionary Principle, to preserve a constitutional republic, Americans must vote for Hillary Clinton.

• It matters not what one thinks of Hillary – love her or hate her, respect or disrespect her. Fundamentally it is not about Hillary. However much status quo the next four years might bring, the potential for change would remain. It is up to us to fight for the change in which we believe, and not just every four years from outside the party.

• In one of the more ironic twists of this election season, the Democrats have become the party of American exceptionalism. The Kahn family, which gave the most powerful presentation, in my mind, during the Convention, amidst the powerful speeches of the Clintons, Bloomberg, POTUS, FLOTUS and VPOTUS, represents the exceptional possibilities America represents to the world.

• In another ironic twist the Democrats now are the party of the American military, the arena resounding with chants of USA! USA! In support of our troops and military campaigns (to the consternation of many Sanders delegates).

• The Clinton campaign got a typical post-convention bounce; the Republicans got the first negative bounce in the history of such Gallup polling, and it was a huuuuge -15.

• All of these points need to be emphasized as we move forward, with clips from the speeches of former NY mayor Bloomberg, the Khan family, the First Lady referencing that slaves built the White House, etc. These need to be promoted as the party continues to reach out to disaffected Sanders supporters, many of whom have never voted before, some too young to have voted before.

• Bernie paid back the Democratic party with respect for allowing him to participate as a Democratic candidate. It may have taken too long, but he came around, spoke forcefully about the need for his supporters to vote for Hillary (there is no other alternative), and then exhorted them to get involved in state and local politics next year to make the remarkably progressive party platform a reality.

• For all of Bernie’s talk of “our revolution,” (at least he spoke in the plural), America is a non-revolutionary, non-ideological nation. The Clintons represent the best of that non-ideological, pragmatic bent towards public policy. As we approach the centenary of the Russian Revolution and Bolshevik coup, it behooves us to keep that in mind. We may be plodding, but much less blood gets spilled. We take to the streets when unarmed black men are gunned down, or four students at Kent State University are killed; in revolutionary states like Soviet Russia and Nazi Germany hundreds of millions are ultimately killed in the pursuit of unattainable utopian ideals.

• I was simultaneously impressed with the passion and commitment of the Sanders delegates, and the appalling way some acted to disrupt the Convention. I had many interesting discussions with younger delegates, whose progressive principles give me hope for my children’s future. I was disgusted that some groups of delegates deliberately refused to shower and change their clothes all week, and another group urinated in the public bathrooms of the Marriott in Center City as a protest within the California delegation. Cheri Honkala, the Green Party 2012 VP candidate, tried to organize a “fart-in” in the arena. In a year when childish tantrums are the tactics of the Republican nominee, we don’t need the same on our side.

• While I’m told the Convention was a success from the perspective of its role as a major television production (which is the main point), the view from inside the arena and the city wasn’t always as sanguine. Control over access to seats and to the arena in general was problematic, as usual, and needs to be improved. Security, understandably intense, was too much so, particularly given the sun and heat which made getting there are real struggle for many older guests. The subway was diverted on Monday without warning, making access even more difficult, and cabs often dropped people off two miles away and left them without any help in finding their way. The food ran out too early; the bathrooms were, remarkably, more than adequate (although conservative media seemed confused about how to evacuate in a gender-neutral bathroom).

• What was this fast food doing at a Democratic convention?

• The fear of left-wing disruption led to a limitation of information, with lists of events and parties being held close and disseminated late, if at all. This created an aura of elitism around the event, which impacted hotel accessibility as well as access inside the arena. Not the impression one wants to give to a younger, highly frustrated generation of activists already turned off by the corporate nature of the upper echelons of the party. Given that the cost of attending was way too high for many Democrats in general, greater effort needs to be made to become more welcoming.

• Being in the arena for four nights I saw that this party had truly become a mosaic. One didn’t need to compare it to the Republicans’ convention the week before. It was real; it felt natural and normal. As I mentioned last week, unlike 2012 when there were more rainbow flags in the hall than American flags, this year the LGBT events seemed no different than those of the other communities. The trans caucus event was an afterthought, unfortunately, and the Equality Forum events throughout the week were almost completely trans-free, but somehow it didn’t seem to matter. There was even a Human Rights Campaign-promoted trans speaker, a first for any party (while Caitlyn got to hang outside in Cleveland).

• Local politics continued as usual, with only a few attendees noting that there may not be state and local elections in 2018 should Hillary lose. In the Maryland delegation, there were multiple events put on by 2018 gubernatorial candidates, including the bussing up of a contingent of activists for “Maryland Day.” Walking the streets of Center City (I had attended med school in Philly so I was comfortable navigating) I noticed a host of other such events from around the country. There were multiple opportunities to meet, in very informal settings, Congresspersons and Senators I had lobbied over the years, governors and former elected who needed to eat and hydrate like the rest of us. I even had the opportunity to thank Dan Rather for fifty years of investigative journalism.

To me the takeaway remains – for the first time during my life, and arguably since 1860, the future of this nation built on the principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness is at risk. Khizr Khan has been making that point since Thursday night, not only on behalf of his son, Captain Khan, but of all those who have for generations come to America in the hope of living in freedom.

In spite of the convention bounce in the polls, and the odds of 65-70% in favor of a Democratic victory in November, we cannot let down our guard. We must work down ballot as well, “Don’t boo – Vote,” and while we need to laugh at the other side in order to stay sane, we need to remain committed to getting the job done. Captain Humayun Khan died to protect his men; we have to campaign to protect our Republic.

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Disgraced Theranos founder
and former billionaire
Elizabeth Holmes is still trying to make it in the world of biotech, despite the two-year ban from operating labs that looms over her. At the American Association for Clinical Chemistry conference on Monday, Holmes announced a new blood-testing device called miniLab, which Holmes claims can run tests on a drop of blood.

Read more…

LG already confirmed that the V20, which takes after the V10 of course, is scheduled to debut in September. Which, of course, leaves us enough time to have as many leaks as we can about it, which is quite needed considering there are very few of them at the moment. One of the earliest comes straight from Korea and, unsurprisingly, … Continue reading